Columnist’s comments appear in Higher English exam

A newspaper columnist claims to have received abuse from Scottish students on social media after her remarks against giving 16-year-olds a vote featured in an exam.

Julia Hartley-Brewer’s Daily Telegraph opinion piece in which she said those aged 16 and 17 should not be able to vote in the upcoming EU referendumwere was included in the Scottish Higher English paper taken today by Scots pupils.

She had written: “If my eight year-old can wait to vote, a couple more years isn’t going to do our 16 year-olds any harm.”

Many students sent her messages after the exam calling her remarks “patronising.”

Others pointed out that as Scottish 16 and 17-year-olds they were already able to vote in today’s Scottish elections.

Hartley-Brewer remained defiant though: “Not a single tweet from an angry Scottish teen today has changed my stance on 16 & 17 year olds voting. Indeed they have confirmed it for me.”